There are no stupid questions only stupid people
October 19th, 2007
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And the stupid people are the ones who are afraid to ask questions! There’s no shame in not knowing something, as nobody is born educated, but the cure for ignorance is information. If you don’t seek out that information, then you remain ignorant, and that’s just stupid.
Following this logic…
We all know that books are a great source of information, and public libraries are a great place to find it. The internet can be useful too, and you don’t even have to leave your home. [of course I could write a whole post about the importance of being careful of your sources]
But there are some times when a book, a website, newspaper, magazine or documentary just won’t cut it. These are the times when you actually need to find a knowledgeable human being who can help answer a question. There are many reasons why you might not be able to find a piece of information in the traditional sources. Perhaps it’s an obscure practical question, such as “How do they do x?” or maybe it’s something which is a bit subjective and applies to a certain group, such as “What do structural engineers think of the 9/11 conspiracy theories?”
There may also be times when information is conflicting and you just don’t know which source to trust. Or it may be that you can find something but just can’t quite understand it. It may seem counter-intuitive, or maybe you just don’t understand WHY it is. Examples of this might include something like “Why do they say dry mouth causes tooth decay? I thought bacteria do well in moist environments and poorly in dry.” Or something like “If alpha particles can’t penetrate human skin, why is plutonium dangerous?” or “If supercomputers are used to predict the weather, and they’re many times better than years ago, why is the forecast still limited to a few days?”
The questions above are imperfect (because you can find the information on the web) but stuff like this sometimes just plain requires a knowledgeable human. Luckilly there are places to find such folks.
Remember though, that before you go bug someone, you best do some checking to make sure you can’t find the information on your own.
- Search for information online. Google is a great tool for casual interest. Google now offers patents and books that can be searched. You can also try places like answers.com or wikipedia.com. Wikipedia is user-edited, so be careful to check sources if you’re unsure, but it’s a great free resource Also try answers.com and refdesk.com
- Go to the library. It requires leaving home but oh well. If your public library does not have what you’re looking for, you might be able to find a local university which will let you use theirs. If you’re willing to make an investment, you can always go to a bookstore too.
- Ask those around you. This is especially true for those who are there to answer questions. If you’re a student, that’s what your professors/teachers are for, and why you pay good money to go to school with live people teaching. If it’s a medical question, you should, of course, ask your doctor! You can also ask any friends you know if they happen to know. (It seems obvious but you could forget.)
Now baring that, you’re going to have to go out and find somebody with the information to set you straight. The internet is great for that. One thing you can do is find online communities and forums, where you can exchange information about all manner of topics. Usenet is not exactly dead either, although web forums seem to have taken it’s place. It’s okay to be a N00B but be sure to look for your question in the archives first before you start posting it (yet again). Forum members find that a tad bit annoying.
Another option is to go and ask a scientist or someone else who just knows. The great thing is that many scientists and professional people are more than willing to help out with information. Scientists are just like anyone else: They can get pretty damn excited about new discoveries and the stuff they do at work. And many want nothing more than to share that excitement.
Here are a few places online to get questions answered. But remember: Check the archives and previous answers and make sure you’re not just re-asking the same question.
Ask a Scientist (Biology/Medical Research)
And a few good information sites with question/answer sections:
Google used to offer a Q&A service, but it’s discontinued. You can still search the archives however. Yahoo offers a community-based answer service, but I haven’t seen much worthwhile on it (hence I’m not even going to bother linking).
And if that doesn’t work, you can always take it upon yourself to e-mail the creator of a website on a given topic and ask them. You can try contacting a professor of the subject, who may be nice enough to give an answer even if you don’t attend the school. Or you can try to find a local association, club or other organization in your area. Organizations like Bar Associations often have pro-bono (free) advice services.
This entry was posted on Friday, October 19th, 2007 at 11:34 am and is filed under Education, Good Science, Links. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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